#I would love to one day make someone as sexually confused as this 😊 | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

jenstar1992-2 · 4 years ago

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A Light in the Darkness

Pairing: Echo x Mechanic! reader

Warnings: Language, loss, grieving, and slight mentions of sexual activities (nothing descriptive)

Word count: 9,989

A/N: So, I had to change the timeline a bit to make a few things seem more logical, and while writing this I envisioned Echo in his newest style of armor because I thought the armor he wore at the end of season 7 would have been too recognizable, and wouldn’t have furthered the story like I wanted. Also, props to my little sister @sgarrett49 for helping me make a big story decision, I couldn’t make up my mind, so she did it for me. Thanks sis! 😊💕

Part 2

Never in your wildest dreams did you think you’d be anything more than friends, let alone actually come to truly love one another, but here you were, deeply and hopelessly in love with a man who treated you as if you were his everything. Little did you know, you were.

You and Echo had been together for almost two years now, and it was honestly the best relationship you had ever been in, and you knew within that first year that he was the one, so you did your best to hold onto him, and to what you two had built together. However, this was usually easier said than done, as you came to find out that dating a soldier could be rather difficult, not to mention quite taxing on the nerves. Not a day went by where you didn’t worry for him, and the constant feeling of him being taken away from you every time he went off on another mission was hell. He would always reassure you before every departure that he would return to you, and that nothing would stop him from doing so, and you believed it every time, which is why when you’d gotten word that their ship would be returning soon from the mission on Lola Sayu, you ran to greet it, already waiting on the landing platform as the ship landed and everyone began to unload.

Your eyes scanned every face that exited the ship and when they landed on that of your friend, a smile grew on your face as you waved to him.

“Fives, hey”, you shouted.

He looked in your direction, making eye contact with you for a moment, and that’s when you noticed the sullen look on his face, which only deepened when he met your eyes. He then looked downward, avoiding your gaze, as he continued walking to the hangar, not saying a word. You thought that was strange as he was usually the one in a good mood and would often greet you with a smile and a hug after missions, but not this time.

Needless to say, you were confused as you watched him leave, until someone said your name from right behind you, startling you out of your daze, and you turned around to see who it was.

“Oh, Rex, hey, do you know what’s up with Fives, he’s acting off, did something happen”, you asked curiously, and that’s when you saw that the somber look you’d seen on Fives was adorning the captain’s features as well.

“Rex, what’s wrong”, you asked, then looking around, only to notice that people had stopped coming off the ship and the ramp was beginning to close. “Where’s Echo?”

Rex’s face dropped even more at your question, and he looked to the floor to avoid your gaze as he spoke.

“(Y/N), there’s something I have to tell you”, he said in a low voice.

A sudden cold chill ran through your body, and you felt a heaviness fall upon you.

“Where is he Rex”, you asked, already putting the pieces together, but desperately wanting it to be something else, anything else.

“He, he was trying to save the shuttle, so we could escape”, he said, pausing to place something in your hand. Looking at it you saw that it was the pendant you’d given Echo after you’d hit your one year mark, the word “Always” engraved in Aurebesh decorating it’s face, it hadn’t just been a simple gift, it had been a promise, a promise that, no matter what, you’d always be there for him, always love him, and it was something he’d treasured and kept on his person at all times, especially when he was away from you. He’d told you that having it allowed him to have a piece of you with him, which was a great comfort. As far as you knew, he was never without it, so when Rex placed the object in your hand, you knew what had happened before he even had to tell you. It was clear he knew this as well, as he didn’t proceed to state the obvious, but instead offered you a sorrowful, “I’m so sorry (Y/N).”

You stared at the pendent in your hand for a long moment, still trying to fully comprehend what this meant, because it didn’t feel real. It felt like your world was crumbling down around you and your senses started to fade until all you could see was blurs, everything you heard was muffled, and all you could feel was… nothing, you were numb. It took you a minute to come back to reality, and once you did, your senses returned like a hard punch to the gut, everything hitting you at once.

You closed your fingers around the object in your hand, its cold surface stinging your skin, and before you knew it, you were on the ground. You’d crashed to your knees, with such force that if you had been more aware you probably would’ve noticed the intense pain that ran through your legs at the impact, but you weren’t, so you didn’t. All you could do was kneel there, clutching the only thing remaining of the one you loved with all your heart, as you let out a noiseless cry, before finally inhaling and openly sobbing.

Seeing you like this broke Rex’s heart, you were one of his closest friends, him being one of the only people, besides Fives, who knew of your and Echo’s relationship, and had been so happy for the two of you, so supportive, it killed him to see you so distraught and know that there was nothing he could do to fix it. So, he did the only thing he could do, he kneeled down in front of you, drew you into his arms, and just held you, held you until the tears ceased, until you had nothing left to give. He held you for as long as you needed, and although he knew it would never be enough, it was all he had to give.

After a long while of crying and silent comfort, you finally managed to pull yourself together enough to stand. You then allowed Rex to take you back to your quarters, where you immediately fell into bed.

Rex left once he felt it was necessary, wanting to give you some time to be alone, time to think, to mourn in peace. Before he left, however, you stopped him and handed back the pendant, although he was unsure if he should take it.

“(Y/N) are you sure. This is all that’s left, you should keep it”, he said.

You shook your head. “I can’t”, you said, your voice almost a whisper. “It’ll just be a reminder of what I lost and seeing it every day will only make it hurt more.”

“If you’re sure…”, he began.

“I’m sure”, you said, stopping his next words.

He nodded then and turned to leave, only stopping at the door to look at you over his shoulder, his expression saddened.

“I’m sorry”, he repeated.

“Me too”, you replied, before watching him take his leave.

You spent the next few hours lying in bed, staring at the wall, trying hard not to burst into tears again as all the memories started flooding your mind. You’d wanted to spend your life with him, to give him the world, but that was no longer a possibility, and that hurt most of all. You weren’t sure how you were going to get through this, but you did know one thing; you couldn’t just give up. Yes, you lost the person you cared for most in this galaxy, but he wasn’t the only one that needed you, you had friends that needed you too, friends that had also just lost a big part of their lives; you’d lost your love, and they’d lost their brother. You would need each other, and so you would carry on, hard as it would be, and be there for them, like you knew they would be for you.

As you slowly began to drift from consciousness, the image in your mind was of him, giving you that perfect smile you adored, a smile you’d never see again, but knew you’d yearn for.

You then fell into a deep sleep, your last conscious thought being one that drew one last tear from your eye, which you let slide down the side of your face until it met the pillow beneath you.

“I didn’t even get to say goodbye.”

***

It had been a long couple of years to say the least, so much had changed in your life, and you still felt like you were trying to catch up with it all.

A few months after the mission to Lola Sayu, you’d been asked to take on the position of field mechanic, which you had agreed to right away. You figured all the moving around and non-stop action would help take your mind off the overwhelming sadness that had become your new companion, and it did, for a time.

However, the universe has a funny way of forcing you to do what you need to, and after a couple of months in the field, you were sent back to work on Coruscant, and this lasted for about a year before you were able to be sent back out.

During that year you had done a lot of reflecting, planning, and most importantly, healing. It took time, but you were finally able to live with the grief that had once consumed you, and you had made it to a place in your life where you could be yourself again, even having someone new in your life that brought you a great deal of happiness.

You now shifted between field and on-world work, in order to maintain your new life, and the relationship thriving within it.

You had been away for a couple of months and had just returned to Coruscant not two days before getting right back to work. The bills never stopped, so neither did you.

You were currently working at your station in the hangar, doing your best to repair an almost completely totaled gunship, when your comm went off. You sighed and made your way down the ladder you had been propped up on, picking up the commlink from your worktable and lifting your welding mask before answering.

“Yeah”, you said, very unprofessionally. You couldn’t help it, you hated when someone interrupted your work, no matter who it was.

“Hey, it’s me, you think you could meet me outside, got a ship for you to look at.”

The voice was all too familiar, and you groaned internally. Of course, he would be the one to try and weasel his way into your busy work schedule.

You gave a heavy sigh before answering. “Look at, or fix? There’s a difference Anakin, and I’m a bit too busy at the moment to add anything else to the ‘fix’ list”, you told the jedi.

But, as always, he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. “Oh, come on, these guys really helped us out, the least we can do is help fix their ship, and we’re not even sure it’s anything major, could be a quick fix, especially if you’re the one tasked to it. Besides, I promised them the best mechanic the GAR has to offer, who else would I call”, he asked, yet again trying to sway you the only way he knew how, damn him, he knew you couldn’t say no when you had a reputation to uphold, not that you were vein about it, it was just nice to know all your hard work was noticed and what you put out was reliable and sought after.

“You know, flattery doesn’t get you everything you want, Skywalker”, you told him, but after a long pause, you responded. “Be out in 5.”

“You’re the best”, he said, and you could practically hear the triumphant smile through his voice.

“Yeah, yeah”, you replied, annoyed that he had you caving to a request for the umpteenth time.

You collected a few of your more commonly used tools and dumped them into your toolbox before closing it up and hauling it off the table, then begrudgingly making your way out to the landing platform. Once there, it didn’t take you long to spot them. Anakin was standing among a group of other men, all soldiers from what you could tell, including Rex, who you were actually happy to see, as it had been a while since you’d even spoken to him. They’d been shipped out to aid in the fight on Anaxes only a few weeks after you yourself had been shipped off to yet another distant planet in the Outer Rim. Honestly, you were just glad he returned, and was seemingly unscathed. However, the joy of seeing your friend couldn’t overpower the feeling of annoyance that had quickly built in you, and you pulled down your welding mask to cover your face in an attempt to hide the deep frown that you now felt pulling at your lips, you didn’t want that to be the first impression these men had of you, so you tried to get your emotions and your expression under control as you closed the distance between you and the group.

“Ah, there she is”, Anakin said, his tone jovial.

You came to stand before him, dropping your toolbox next to you, quite unceremoniously, and crossing your arms.

“What’s with the mask, you hiding from us now”, he asked jokingly, which only pissed you off more.

“Oh, believe me, you don’t want to see the face I’m giving you right now”, you replied.

“Come on, you’re really that mad?”

“Yes. You do know I don’t actually work for you right, you can’t keep asking me to drop everything because you need something. I have a gunship in there that needs a hell of a lot more than a tune-up, and if I don’t get it repaired within the allotted two weeks, they’re gonna scrap it”, you explained, unintentionally letting out some of your anger through your words.

“And, the Republic never seems to have an issue getting more, I’m sure we can get a new gunship in no time”, he said, not seeing your reasoning.

“That’s not it Sir, she doesn’t like waste”, Rex answered on your behalf.

You looked to him, then finally lifting your mask to smile at him.

“Thank you, Rex”, you said, before turning your attention back to Anakin, your eyebrow raised as you gave him a look. “At least someone gets it.”

“Alright, alright, I’m sorry, this’ll be the last time I interrupt you, promise”, Anakin said, raising his arms defensively.

“Yea, I’ll believe that when I see it”, you scoffed, then removing the mask completely and setting it beside your toolbox. You then turned your attention to the group of unfamiliar faces and gave them a warm smile. “Sorry, I’m not usually like this, it’s just that this one has a way of bringing out my inner bitch”, you told them, gesturing to Anakin, who just rolled his eyes.

“No need to apologize Ma’am, we understand”, said the man at the front of the group, clearly the leader of the bunch, as the others simply nodded their agreement. “I’m Hunter”, he said, offering you his hand, which you took and shook firmly.

“(Y/N), nice to meet you, I take it you’re in charge here”, you asked him.

“I am”, he replied.

“Good, so, what’s wrong with your ship?”

“Not quite sure, we were hoping you might be able to help us figure it out, that is, if you’re willing. We understand if you’re too busy”, he said, quickly adding that last bit to not seem demanding, and while you appreciated the possible out, you were already there, so you might as well follow through.

“It’s alright, I’m always busy. What’s one more project”, you said, giving him as cheerful of a response as you could muster at the moment, and you took the short moment of silence that followed as an opportunity to scan over the rest of his squad, getting a more detailed look this time.

They were definitely clones, but none like you’d ever seen before, their features slightly similar, but still differing from one another, and certainly from your typical clone. This was true, at least, for the four you could see. They had a fifth member, but it seemed he was taking your initial approach, as he had kept his helmet on, which was effectively blocking you from getting any decent view of the face underneath, so you were only left with your assumptions. All you could discern was that he was looking straight at you, unmoving, and you could almost feel the intensity of his stare, even through the visor. This caused you to shift, feeling a bit uncomfortable that a complete stranger was looking at you in such a way, the feeling only made worse by the fact that you couldn’t actually see the expression being sent your way.

“Great, it’s settled then. You’ll help them out and I’ll get started on keeping my promise by getting out of your hair”, Anakin said from behind you, causing you to turn and give him one last glare before he made his exit.

You shook your head before looking to Rex, who was now giving what looked like a slightly confused, if not frustrated, look to one of the men in front of you. When you looked back, you noticed the helmeted soldier looking back at him, and shaking his head slightly, as if saying a silent, “no”. You thought this was strange but didn’t have time to think about it in any depth as your attention was soon brought back to Hunter, who was now making his way to their ship and beckoning you to follow.

As you walked the short distance, the other three introduced themselves to you, and the one called Tech began explaining to you all the things he’d already checked and the causes he’d debunked, telling you he hoped this information would help you in finding the problem a little quicker, now that you knew all the things it wasn’t. You weren’t annoyed, as this did help to narrow it down, and once you’d made it to the ship, you got right to work.

As you rummaged around the innards of the ship you now knew to be the Havoc Marauder, you couldn’t help but notice the unidentified member of the group talking to Rex, although, it seemed as if they were having an argument of sorts, nothing too heated, but one that definitely had Rex frustrated, which was a rarity as far as you knew.

You shook off your curiosity and got back to your inspection, and soon your eyes lit with realization.

“Ah ha”, you exclaimed. “Here’s your problem, your flight stabilizer is shot”, you explained.

“Impossible, that was one of the first pieces I checked, and I saw nothing wrong with it”, Tech told you.

“Well, not to be rude, but you must not have checked thoroughly, because that’s definitely where your problem is”, you said confidently.

“And just what makes you say that”, he asked, seeming a bit insulted by your accusation.

You then grabbed the part and hauled it out of its compartment, then turned it so that the side that had not been easily visible when it was hooked up was now facing him, revealing a small puncture mark in its side.

He looked at the part in your hand, then back to you, a look of surprise now adorning his features.

“How did you…”, he began to ask, but you just shrugged.

“Just gotta know what you’re looking for. This problem is actually pretty common in Omicron-classes, and usually stems from the stabilizer not being installed correctly. My guess is whoever put it in made adjustments that were too tight, and this caused it to be too close to this here”, you explained, pointing to the piece of machinery that had been right next to the one now in your hand, and had a piece jutting out from it, “which allowed it to rub against the stabilizer until it eventually punctured it.”

The commando just stared at you for a moment, still trying to process how he could’ve missed that, but he soon composed himself and spoke.

“Oh, well, that makes sense”, he said.

“Can you fix it”, Hunter asked, coming to stand next to his comrade.

You scoffed. “Of course I can, and lucky for you guys, I just so happen to have a spare flight stabilizer back in my work station, I can grab it and have you fixed up in no time”, you told them.

“Then what are we waiting for, lead the way”, Hunter said, gesturing you forward.

You nodded and began the walk back to the hangar, heading for your work area.

Rex came to walk beside you soon enough, and you couldn’t help but inquire about the strange behaviors you’d just witnessed.

“Hey, is everything okay, do you know that guy”, you asked him in a whisper while subtly gesturing to the man in question.

Rex looked to you, then sighed. “It’s… complicated, I can’t really explain right now”, he whispered back.

You gave him a confused look, but decided you wouldn’t push the matter, Rex always had his reasons, and they were valid, you were sure this instance was no different.

“Okay”, you said, drawing out the word. “Well, in any case, I’m glad your finally back safe”, you said, smiling up at him, which he then returned.

“Thanks (Y/N), you too.”

***

Echo felt like he was glued to the floor as soon as you removed your mask, and he found himself looking at a face he never thought he’d see again.

You were still just as beautiful as he remembered, maybe even more so, and all he found himself able to do was stare at you, completely mesmerized, as you spoke to the general.

He saw the annoyed expression you were giving the man, and while he knew it was one given out of genuine upset, he couldn’t help but note the way your nose scrunched up and the corner of your mouth quirked up a bit, a look he had always found strangely adorable.

All he really wanted to do in that moment was run to you, scoop you up, and pepper your face with kisses like he used to, but he quickly reminded himself that, that wasn’t a good idea. It had been a long time since you two had seen each other, and he had changed, significantly. He wasn’t sure you’d even want him anymore at this point, hell, you’d probably already moved on. No, he wasn’t going to mess things up for you by exposing his identity, he’d simply admire you from afar while he could, much like he had all those years ago, before he’d plucked up the nerve to actually talk to you.

When Rex sent him a look that was clearly meant to coax him into revealing himself to you, he simply shook his head, earning him a look of confusion from the captain, but Rex wasn’t about to go against his wishes, and ended up keeping quiet about it as well, that is until he confronted Echo a short time later.

You had just started your examination of the Marauder’s inner workings, when Rex approached Echo, arms crossed.

“Alright, you wanna tell me what that was all about, why didn’t you say anything to her”, Rex asked, looking a bit disappointed.

“I couldn’t, I can’t, not like this, it would only upset her, and I don’t want to do that. It’s better if she just doesn’t know”, Echo explained.

“What are you talking about, that woman loves you with all she has, I know it, just like I know she’d be elated to know your alive”, Rex told his brother, desperately trying to convince him.

Echo sighed. “I’m sorry Rex, but I just can’t, please try to understand.”

“You know if she found out you were hiding from her, it’d break her heart.”

“Then I guess it’s a good thing she won’t find out”, Echo replied.

Rex then let out his own sigh before responding. “Fine, I won’t say anything to her, but I still think that you should”, he said before going to catch up to you as you walked in the direction of the hangar, followed by Hunter and Tech; Crosshair and Wrecker deciding to stay in the ship as they figured it would be repaired shortly, and they’d be leaving soon.

After a moment of contemplation, Echo decided to follow you all, figuring that if this was to be the last time he’d see you, he’d better keep you in his sights.

***

You soon made it back to your workstation and began your search for the part, while Rex excused himself, saying there was something he needed to do, but he’d be back.

After a few minutes of searching, you were beginning to get irritated with yourself. While you were a great mechanic, you were lousy at keeping track of your things, and often misplaced parts and tools around your station, it was actually something Echo used to tease you about, often saying how you’d lose your head if it wasn’t attached. You’d always scowl and tell him to help you look instead of just watching you frantically search around like a crazy person, mumbling about how you knew it was around there somewhere. You would only get more annoyed when he would then find whatever you were looking for in less than half the time, not that this feeling lasted long as he always had a way of bringing a smile back to your face, usually by way of some cheesy joke, followed by some form of flattery. Where this never fully worked for someone like Anakin, it always worked for Echo.

“Are you sure you have the part”, Tech asked after a good ten minutes of watching you search the mess that was your workstation.

“Sure, I’m sure”, you replied, not looking at him as you continued searching, “and I’m pretty sure it’s over… here”, you said, moving to the far wall.

He and Hunter exchanged a look before deciding to help in the search, each taking a different section of the space, and before you knew it, all three men were looking around for the illusive piece of machinery. Soon enough you heard someone behind you clear their throat, prompting you to turn around.

You saw that it was the fifth member of the group, face still hidden, standing in front of you now, and before you could ask what he wanted, you noticed the stabilizer he was holding out to you.

“This what you’re looking for”, he asked.

You were a bit stunned to hear him speak after being so quiet all this time, but this short utterance did allow you to further your theory as to who was beneath that bucket. It was odd though, while he sounded a lot like your typical clone, there was something else there, something you couldn’t quite put your finger on.

You took the part from him and gave an awkward “thanks”, while he only nodded in response.

Just then, the sound of someone yelling cut through the hangar, causing you all to look in its direction.

“Hey, get back here you, I told you to stay close”, you heard Jesse yell as he chased a, surprisingly quick footed, child through the hangar.

She giggled at his attempts to reach her, her smile only growing as she caught a glimpse of you, and then made a b-line in your direction.

When she was only a few feet away she reached out her arms and called to you in a high-pitched voice.

“Mommy”, she screeched, as she launched herself at you.

You bent down, placing the stabilizer on the ground next to you, then catching and scooping her up in your arms, a bright smile now adorning your face.

“Hey”, you said with a laugh. “What are you doing here Little Miss?”

“Running from me for starters”, Jesse said as he approached, winded from the chase.

You looked to the young girl with a raised eyebrow.

“Is that true”, you asked her.

“Uncle Jesse slow”, she announced, giggling throughout her whole sentence.

You hummed and looked to the man in question, who then offered you a shrug.

“What, she’s a fast little thing”, he said, that being the weakest defense you’d ever heard.

“She’s two”, you told him.

“And a half”, he argued back, causing you to roll your eyes at him.

“Whatever you say, now, back to my question, what is she doing here, I thought you two were going to have a movie night back at the apartment, and has she even eaten dinner yet”, you asked him.

Jesse scratched the back of his neck, abashed.

“Well, we were going to do all that, but then I got Rex’s message and we came here instead”, he explained.

“What message”, you asked him, confused.

“The message I sent him, telling him to meet me here”, Rex said as he entered your station, “thought Lena might be missing her mother”, he explained.

Your daughter let out a small gasp when she saw him. “Uncle Rex”, she shouted excitedly, while absentmindedly reaching for him.

You set her down and watched as she attacked him with the same force she had with you earlier, the scene making you chuckle.

“I think she missed you more”, you told him.

He chuckled as well as he bent down to her level, catching her in a hug, smiling warmly at her when she eventually pulled away to stare up at him.

“And how’s our little soldier today”, he asked her.

“Good”, she told him, then gasping as if she’d just remembered something. “Uncle Rex, I been practice.”

“Oh, practicing what, little one”, he asked.

Lena then stepped back and straightened her posture before giving her uncle her best salute, all while desperately trying to keep a serious face. You both found it very adorable.

“Yes, you have been practicing, good job”, Rex told the girl, but when she didn’t change her posture, he gave her a confused look.

“You suppose to say”, she whispered.

Rex’s confused expression changed to one of understanding, as he now knew what she’d been waiting for.

“Right, sorry”, he said, then standing straight himself before clearing his throat and letting out an authoritative, “at ease”, which finally prompted Lena to relax her stance. He then bent back down and opened his arms to her again. “Now, as you were”, he said, and she once more launched herself towards him, hugging him with all the strength her tiny arms could muster.

***

Echo was left stunned.

Mommy, she’d called you “Mommy”, and Rex’s words only confirmed she was yours.

So, he had been right, you had moved on. You had a daughter, probably a husband too; you had a family. He’d be lying if he said this information didn’t leave him a little brokenhearted, but overall, he was truly happy for you, he was glad you had been able to find some happiness again. Why hadn’t Rex told him, did he think he wouldn’t be able to handle the news? Well, whatever the reason, he now knew, and he was glad he hadn’t revealed himself, for it certainly would’ve caused quite the mess.

He looked at the girl, taking in her appearance; big brown eyes, hair the same color as yours, and her skin was a lovely shade of copper; she was beautiful, just like her mother.

Seeing this child, who looked almost like a little version of you, brought back memories of late night talks you’d had about your plans for the future. How after the war, you both would leave and move to a quiet planet far away, get a house, start a family, and just cherish the rest of the time you had together. It seemed as though you at least had part of that dream now, and he hoped that one day you’d get the rest of it, even if it wasn’t with him, because as long as you were happy, then so was he.

***

Once Lena pulled away from Rex again, she looked around, finally realizing there were others besides her mother and uncles in the space around her. Her eyes came to land on one in particular, and she walked over to him, her eyes then going wide as she stared at his cybernetic arm.

“What happen”, she asked, pointing to the artificial limb.

Your eyes went wide. “Aileen (L/N)”, you scolded her lightly, knowing she didn’t mean anything by it, but wanting her to know it wasn’t polite to ask such things. “We don’t ask people things like that, it’s rude”, you told her, bending slightly and pacing a hand on her shoulder, before then looking at the man with an apologetic expression, “I’m sorry, she’s just…”, you began, but he soon cut you off.

“No, no, it’s alright, she’s just curious”, he said, trying to reassure you he wasn’t insulted by the question. He then bent down so he could speak to her without looking too intimidating. “Well, you see, I had an accident, and I lost my arm, so, I had to get a new one”, he explained in a soft tone, holding his arm up for her to see better.

Lena looked as if she was thinking this answer over before she finally asked, “You have boo-boo?”

You then heard the man chuckle from beneath his helmet.

“Yeah, yeah I had a boo-boo”, he confirmed.

Lena then stepped closer to him, kissing the palm of her hand before placing it on the forearm of the cybernetic limb.

“There go”, she said, then asking, “better?”

While you couldn’t see the man’s face, you were sure he was smiling, you could hear it in his next words.

“Much better, thank you Lena”, he told the child.

“You welcome”, she exclaimed.

You sent him a thankful smile as he stood once more, then turning your attention back to Lena.

“Not that I don’t love seeing you Sweetheart, but Mommy still has some work to do, and I believe you have a grumbly tummy to feed”, you said, starting to direct her back to her uncles, who still stood near where they entered.

She turned her head to look up at you, a pout now on her face.

“But Mommy”, she whined.

“No buts, now go with Uncle Jesse”, you told her.

“Actually”, Rex cut in, “Uncle Jesse can take the night off, I’ll take over babysitting duty”, he said.

“You sure”, you asked him, not really surprised at the offer, as he did this more often than not, but you always had to make sure. You never wanted to inconvenience them, and often tried to hire a babysitter instead of just relying on her uncles to take care of her while you were working, even though they told you time and time again that there was no need, and that they’d be more than willing to take on the responsibility. Even going as far as to try and get you to let go of your live-in nanny, who you’d hired shortly after your maternity leave was up, a leave that had been graciously extended due to the circumstances, to take care of Lena while you were away doing field work, but you wouldn’t budge on that one, seeing as you never knew who would be shipped out and when, not wanting to risk leaving her with a complete stranger as a result of having no other option, so you kept the nanny for those necessary times. However, when she would send you the weekly update, she’d always mention the numerous visits Lena had gotten from multiple uncles during that time.

You had come to realize rather early on that the clones took to the fatherly role very easily, and even the ones that didn’t, still enjoyed the company of their little niece, but they all protected her as if she was their own, and you couldn’t be more grateful.

“Of course, besides, I could use some quality Lena time, feels like I haven’t seen her in ages”, he said before bending down to make eye contact with the girl. “What do you say kiddo, you want to go get somethin’ to eat, I’ll let you pick, and maybe we’ll even pick up a special dessert on the way home, how’s that sound?”

“Yay”, Lena shouted.

“Alright, but be on your best behavior, okay”, you told her.

“Okay Mommy”, she replied.

“Seriously, do you have to one up me like that”, Jesse asked Rex, who just shrugged before picking up his niece.

“Gotta stay the favorite uncle somehow”, he responded.

Jesse scoffed. “Who said you were her favorite”, he asked.

“It’s pretty obvious who she prefers to spend time with”, Rex told his brother, being a bit smug in his delivery.

“Really, okay then, let’s see”, Jesse said before looking to the child now in Rex’s arms. “Lena, you pick, boring dinner with Uncle Rex, or fun movie night with lots of snacks with Uncle Jesse”, he asked her.

Lena thought about this for a minute, she then raised her arms in the air and excitedly yelled, “Both”.

The two men looked to one another before smirking at their niece.

“Well played Kid”, Jesse remarked.

Rex then lifted Lena, so she was sitting on his shoulders and the three of them left to begin their busy night.

You couldn’t help but laugh at their antics as you watched them walk off. Your daughter was turning into the most spoiled kid on Coruscant, but you didn’t have the heart to intervene.

After they were out of sight, you got back to work, going to pick up the previously discarded part off the ground before turning your attention back to the three men occupying your workspace.

“Sorry about that, now, let’s get that ship of yours fixed”, you said, now with a little more pep in your step. Your daughter had that effect on you, just like her father before her.

As you walked back to the ship, Hunter spoke up.

“Cute kid”, he said.

“Yes, and quite well spoken for someone of her age”, Tech added.

“Thanks, but I can’t take all the credit, she gets a lot of it from her dad, especially the brains”, you admitted.

Hunter hummed before asking, “And Lena’s father, where is he?”

You suddenly looked to your feet, your pace slowing a bit.

They noticed and Hunter now felt bad about asking, seeing it was clearly a touchy subject, and he tried to back track.

“Sorry, you don’t have to answer that, it’s really none of my business”, he said, but you shook your head and looked back up, picking up your pace once more.

“No, it’s alright, I just… haven’t talked about it in a while, that’s all”, you explained. “Lena’s father, he… he died a long time ago.”

You’d finally made it back to the ship and quickly adorned your work gloves to begin your repairs, trying to ignore the pitied looks you were now getting, as you started.

“Oh, I’m, I’m sorry to hear that, was he…”, Hunter began to ask, but you already knew the question, so you answered before he even finished asking it.

“A soldier? Yeah, he was, a damn good one too, saved a lot of lives… before he lost his own”, you told them, continuing to install the stabilizer.

“What happened?”

You huffed a bitter laugh. “Same thing that always happens, a plan goes awry and things get crazy, this time he just happened to be in the line of fire”, you said, not wanting to go into any more detail than that.

“I’m sorry, I know that must’ve been hard, and then having to raise a kid on top of it, I can’t even imagine how frightening that was”, Hunter said somberly.

“You’d think it would be, huh”, you said, your hands slowing as you thought back to that time in your life. “But you know, the crazy thing was, I didn’t feel that way at all. I thought I’d be scared out of my mind, but all I felt was… relieved.” When you noticed their confused expressions, you continued. “When I lost Lena’s father, I was a wreck, and I went to a very dark place for a long while, so, I threw myself into my work as a way to escape the pain, which could only work so well. But, when I found out that I was pregnant, it was like a spark was lit within my mind, and with it came a small light that slowly grew as time went by, and that light ate away at the darkness that had clouded my thoughts, then… she was here, and it was like she chased away what was left.” You had no idea why you were telling them all this, but once you started, you couldn’t seem to stop, it was like you were letting out the thoughts that had been trapped within you for years, and so you didn’t stop yourself. “The first time I saw her was an experience I can’t fully explain, she was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen, and when she looked at me with those eyes, his eyes, everything felt right again. It’s like she was the piece of himself he left behind, so I wouldn’t be alone” you explained, taking a pause before finishing. “That’s why I named her Aileen; it means ‘shining light’, which is what she is, my light in the darkness, the one that always guides me home.”

You hadn’t realized you were crying silent tears until you felt them land on your exposed collarbones, quickly wiping them from your face with the back of your work glove and clearing your throat as you made the final adjustment, finishing your task.

“There, now you should be good to go”, you told them, and you began packing your toolbox back up, trying to avoid their gaze as you now felt a bit embarrassed for practically telling your life story to a bunch of guys you just met.

However, they didn’t seem to mind.

As you stood, you felt a comforting hand land on your shoulder, and you looked up to see Hunter smiling warmly at you.

“Thanks for the help”, he said, keeping his tone soft.

You smiled back. “No problem.”

He and Tech then walked to the ramp, the latter giving you a kind nod as he passed.

“Oh, and by the way”, Hunter said, turning back around. “While Lena may have gotten her smarts from her father, she definitely got her spirit from you. You’re a strong woman (Y/N), she’s lucky to have a mother like you.”

You just stood there for a moment, surprised by his comment, but also warmed by it.

“Thank you”, you said.

He nodded and then looked to the man behind you, giving him a questioning look.

***

Echo watched as the tears began to stream down your face, and he wondered if you even noticed them, although you probably didn’t; you were so wrapped up in your memories to notice anything at this point.

Throughout this whole conversation, the wheels in Echo’s head had been turning, and he had slowly begun to piece together the information you had been providing them, but it wasn’t until you said something about Lena being, “the piece of himself he left behind”, that it finally clicked.

You hadn’t moved on, you hadn’t found someone else, hadn’t been with anyone else, which meant…

***

“Hey, you coming”, Hunter asked, seeing him just standing there as if he’d been gob smacked.

You turned around and cocked your head, confused by the man’s odd behavior, and gave him a curious look. It seemed as if he were contemplating his next move, and after a moment he straightened his posture and walked over, stopping right in front of you. You couldn’t see them, but you felt his eyes on yours, could feel how intense his stare was; it was actually a bit intimidating, and you fidgeted a little where you stood.

Finally, after an intense and, quite frankly, awkward few seconds of silence, he spoke.

“I’m so sorry, for everything. You shouldn’t have had to go through that on your own”, he said.

This surprised you more than Hunter’s earlier comment, and your expression only filled with more confusion.

“Um, it’s okay, really, it’s not like it was your fault”, you told him, but he quickly shook his head.

“No, it is, it is my fault, I was the one who wasn’t careful, I was the one who risked everything, and I’m so sorry (Y/N)”, he said, emotion slowly growing in his voice.

“What the hell are you talking about, I don’t even know you”, you said, not knowing where this was coming from, or why this guy was even apologizing to you in the first place.

“Yes… you do”, he said, reaching into the pouch on his hip, pulling something out, and holding it out toward you, allowing you to look at the object laying on his palm. As soon as you laid eyes on the object, your heart stopped and it felt as if the breath had been stollen from your lungs. Lying on his open palm was a pendant, his pendant, the one you’d last given to Rex out of grief, the one you couldn’t bear to look at for so many years because it was a reminder of the promise that had been broken the day you thought you’d lost it all.

“Where did you get that”, you asked, your voice breathy, almost as if it were meant to be a whisper.

He looked down at the pendant in his hand before answering.

“Rex returned it to me, after they rescued me from the Separatists, but before that, you gave it to me, said it was a promise, a promise that you’d always be with me, that we’d always be together, that you’d always love me. I never thought I’d see it again, never thought I’d see you again, but I’m glad I was wrong”, he said, finally looking back to your eyes, noticing that they were filling with tears.

You walked closer to him, desperately searching for his eyes behind his visor.

“Echo?” Your voice was barely audible, as his name escaped your lips on a breath.

He nodded, not being able to vocalize his confirmation as he was trying to hold his own rising emotions back; he wanted to be strong for you, even though he knew you didn’t care if he expressed his emotions openly, and that you didn’t always need him to be the rock of the relationship, but he still tried, nonetheless.

You let out a mixture of a sob and a sigh before suddenly wrapping your arms around his neck and pulling him into an eager embrace. When he reciprocated and wrapped his arms around your waist, you pulled him in tighter, holding on for dear life, afraid if you didn’t that he’d disappear before your eyes.

“How is this possible”, you asked over his shoulder.

He chuckled. “It’s a long story.”

“And you’re a damn fool if you think I’m not gonna want to hear it”, you said, a smile now tugging on your lips.

“You will, but later. For now, let’s just focus on this”, he said, giving you a light squeeze around your middle to emphasize his words, making you laugh.

You stayed like that for another few minutes before you spoke again.

“I missed you, so much”, you whispered, your face right next to his.

“I missed you too Cyar’ika”, he said.

The utterance of the Mando’a term of endearment widening your smile. You hadn’t realized how much you missed hearing the language roll off his tongue.

You loosened your hold and pulled back to once again search for his eyes before slowly reaching for his helmet, wanting nothing more than to remove it and finally see him after all this time, you needed to, needed to see his eyes looking back at you, then it would be real. Before you could attempt to do this, however, he lightly grabbed your wrist, his right arm laying on top of your other one, effectively blocking it from lifting.

“What’s wrong”, you asked him, confused, and a bit worried, by his actions.

“A lot has changed, I’ve changed, I’m not the same man you remember (Y/N)”, he told you.

“That’s pretty obvious Love”, you said, your eyes shifting to the cybernetic arm that currently lay atop the back of your left wrist.

“It’s not just the arm; that explosion took a lot from me, the Separatists even more so, and the whole thing left me, well, broken”, he admitted.

You paused as his words caused a wave of sadness to wash over you, then anger. What had they done to him? Whatever it was, you wanted to wring their necks with your bare hands, how dare they even think to touch him. If you didn’t hate those Seppie bastards before, you certainly did now.

You quickly tried to calm the growing fire building in you so you could give a response that wasn’t full of anger; he didn’t deserve that from you, truth be told, he didn’t deserve any of this, but that was a conversation for another time, right now you had to stay focused. You shook yourself from your thoughts and were finally able to find your words.

“So what, we’re all a little broken if you think about it, it’s just that not all of us wear it on our exterior, either way it’s nothing to be ashamed of”, you said, trying to sound reassuring.

“I know, it’s just… I guess what I’m trying to say is, you might not like what you see”, he explained.

You felt a small flicker of anger rise within you once again, but for a completely different reason. Did he really believe you to be so shallow, didn’t he know you better than that?

You suddenly grabbed the sides of his helmet and gently pulled his face closer to yours, a look of determination on your face.

“Now you listen to me, and you listen good. I don’t give a damn how different you look on the outside, you’re still the same man I fell in love with on the inside, I can feel it”, you told him, your expression softening. “I will always love you Echo, no matter what’s under that helmet.”

He considered this a moment before nodding and releasing your wrists, allowing his arms to fall to his sides.

You wasted no time in gently lifting the thing off, hearing a low hiss as it released itself and loosened, making the task much easier. You pulled it out toward you as you went so as not to catch it on his chin, then finally removed it, getting a glimpse of what lay beneath, the face of your lost lover.

It was as he said, he was different; his face was thinner than you remembered, eyes a bit sunken and their color dulled, looking more gold now than brown, his once tanned skin was now pale, and the hair you used to run your fingers through was now gone, allowing you to see the small metal protrusions that now scattered along the sides of his head. Yet, even with all these changes, you still found him to be the most handsome man you’d ever laid your eyes on, and you’d spend the rest of your days proving that to him if you had to.

Still, his appearance told you something; he had suffered, most likely in more ways than one, and probably to a degree you couldn’t even fathom. These thoughts brought the tears back to your eyes, how could something so terrible happen to such a good person. You would never understand it.

You brought your hands to his face, softly placing a hand on each side, using your thumbs to caress the skin under them.

“Oh, Echo”, you whispered, the tears making your eyes glisten.

He grinned a humorless grin.

“I told you it was bad”, he said, giving you a small shrug.

You shook your head. “No, it’s not that”, you explained. “I’m so sorry you had to go through all that, and alone, no less.”

He then smiled a more genuine smile and placed his hand on top of yours.

“I wasn’t alone”, he explained, causing you to look at him curiously, but he continued. “You accompanied my thoughts every day, you were right there with me, encouraging me to stay strong and that everything was going to be okay, you were what got me through, you were my light.”

This only brought more tears to your eyes, threatening to spill over at any second.

You gently pulled his face closer, looking deep into his eyes.

“I love you”, you said softly.

“And I love you, so much”, he replied, voice just as soft as yours had been.

You then leaned in, slowly closing the gap between you.

The kiss started out much like the ones you both had shared in the past, soft and loving, but soon changed as something deep within you took over, and you moved your free hand to the back of his neck, then slowly moving it upwards until it rested at the base of his skull, as a means to take more control of the situation, using this new hand placement to pull him closer, effectively deepening the kiss. The action seemed to catch him a bit off guard initially as it sent small shocks through his system, something he hadn’t experienced in a long time, but he soon was able to regain some semblance of composure, then wrapping his right arm around your waste and using his forearm to push against your back, pulling you closer in the process, and allowing himself to melt into the kiss.

You two had, had some very intimate and emotional moments in the past, but nothing like this. You both were putting everything into it; the years of longing, feelings of loneliness and loss, as well as the utter relief and happiness of being together again, it was all poured into this one kiss.

It took you both a minute to realize you needed air, and even then, you were reluctant to pull away. You eventually did manage to separate from the kiss, but your hold on one another didn’t give, and you stood in that embrace for a while, foreheads touching, and eyes closed, both content to just bask in the presence of the one before you.

After a few minutes like this, Echo spoke the only other thought that had been on his mind.

“And Lena, she’s…”, he began to ask, stopping short, still slightly worried he might be wrong.

You opened your eyes and leaned back just a bit so you could look at him, a warm smile on your face.

“Yours”, you asked, finishing his question. He then opened his eyes and nodded. “Yes, she is. Although, I’m surprised that’s even up for question, who else’s would she be?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know, I guess my first thought was that you’d moved on, found someone who was actually worthy of your affection, it took me a minute to even consider the possibility that you hadn’t, and that she was my…”, he said, cutting himself off again, this time in an attempt to stifle the emotion welling in his voice. This was all so much in such a short span of time, and it was finally hitting him. He’d gone from thinking you were lost to him and that he’d have to let you go, to finding out that, in fact, you weren’t, and he didn’t, that you still loved him with your whole being, you were still his, and on top of all that, he now had a daughter, he was a father. So, getting a bit emotional was completely understandable, and you gave him a minute before continuing the conversation.

“I know, it’s a lot to take in all at once, but you don’t have to rush into anything if you’re not comfortable, we can take things as slow as you need to, she doesn’t need to know…”, you began to explain, quickly getting cut off.

“No”, he said with a sense of urgency. “No, I don’t want to hide this from her, don’t want you to have to hide it either. We’ll tell her, together.”

“You sure”, you asked.

He smiled and pulled your face closer, so your foreheads were touching again.

“I’ve never been more sure”, he responded, then slowly leaning back in, but before he could completely close the space he stopped and pulled back. “Well, almost never, there was that time I was very sure Rex would find us in that supply closet, really wish I hadn’t been right about that one though.”

This sudden change of subject surprised you, but also had you bursting out into a fit of laughter, both at the way he so casually brought up the embarrassing incident, and also at the memory of Rex’s face when he’d opened that door and found you both in a very compromising position. It had taken him a good few weeks before he could look you in the eye again.

“I still can’t believe he let that one slide, well, almost, I knew we wouldn’t get out of that without at least one of us getting a talking to”, you said.

Echo chuckled, remembering the twenty-minute-long lecture he’d received from his superior on the incident.

“Yeah, but it was worth it”, he said, lightly bumping your nose with his.

You let out a small laugh.

“You’re an idiot”, you told him playfully.

“As long as I’m still you’re idiot”, he responded, his eyes suddenly looking deep into yours once more.

You reached your hand, that had been released seconds ago, to find his, that was now resting on your cheek, then finding the pendant that was still hanging from his fingers by its attached leather cord and taking it. You held the metal piece in your open palm, looking down at it for a moment before taking the cord in both hands and placing it around his neck, allowing the pendant to rest comfortably against his chest plate. You then rested your hand atop the piece, rubbing your index finger along its engraving.

You looked back to his eyes.

“Always”, you said with a smile.

This time he didn’t stop as he leaned forward and captured your lips in another kiss, one that was just as passionate as the last, but that also held a promise of the future you both had hoped for, one that now had become possible again.

“Well, that was… unexpected”, Tech said from his place on the ramp, the two commandos having just witnessed the entirety of your interaction.

Hunter chuckled. “Go get the others, it looks like we’ll be staying for a while longer”, he told his brother.

Neither you, nor Echo, heard their brief conversation, too wrapped up in what you were doing, and too content to care about anything else. In this moment you were truly happy, as well as relieved, because for the first time, in a long time, you felt whole again.

Clone boys taglist: @sgarrett49 / @dreamingofclones / @justanothersadperson93

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